Babysitting With Kate and James
by Animorphgirl
Summary: A teenage Sawyer has to babysit a six year old Kate for an evening! What will happen? implied future Skate Takes place about twenty years before the island.


A/N: All information regarding dates was taking from Lostpedia. This website claims Kate was born in 1977 and Sawyer was born in 1968, but does not give specific dates. Likewise, we don't know exactly how old Kate was when Diane and Wayne got married. So, I've tried to fill in the gaps here. The story takes place in the late fall of 1983, when Kate is six and a half and Sawyer is almost sixteen. The story is semi AU because all of the events before and after this story follow canon. Then again, with various Lost characters having met each other before the plane crash, it's entirely possible that this story fits into canon! (There are some similarities/references to my other fanfic, _Key to Everything.)_

Katie Austen, age six and a half, was not happy about upcoming events.

She knew that yucky, smelly Wayne was going to marry her mommy in a few months. She also knew that this meant her mommy and Wayne were going to be spending even more time together as they prepared for the wedding.

Like tonight.

They were going to a fancy party and tell everyone that they were getting married. These people, Katie knew, would be happy about this and everyone would drink a lot of wine.

Mommy would come home late, with Wayne, who would be one of the people who had drunk too much wine. Mommy would drink a little, but not a whole lot because she'd be the one driving them home.

The only adult Katie knew who was not thrilled with the upcoming wedding was her dad. He and her mommy had gotten a divorce just after Katie turned five, and Mommy did not seem very upset about this. She started dating Wayne immediately, a tall dark haired man with a mean scowl who could go from nice to mean in seconds.

Less than two years had passed since they started dating, and it was to Katie's horror that they were engaged. As far as Katie could tell, this meant her mommy and Wayne went to parties a lot, arrived home well after Katie was supposed to be asleep, and complained about headaches the next day.

Wayne did not exactly live with Katie and her mother, but he spent the night at least a few times a week. When Katie asked about this, her mother explained that they were getting ready to be married.

The nights out were becoming more and more frequent. After Katie found out about the engagement, only two months ago, it seemed like her mother and Wayne were going to parties every week. Wayne always stayed over during these nights, so Katie found another reason to dread them.

Whenever Katie's mother went out with Wayne, one of two people would baby sit Katie. The first, who Katie's mom preferred, was Katie's grandmother. She was the grandmother who was her father's mother. She did not let Katie watch more than an hour of TV, a rule Katie's mother hardly ever enforced when she was at home, only let Katie have one dessert after dinner, and was strict about Katie being in bed by 8:30.

She also told Katie lots of funny stories about her daddy when he was a little boy and helped Katie with her homework. She also smelled good—like raisins and cinnamon—and let Katie help when she made oatmeal raisin cookies. Grandma wanted Katie in _bed_ on time, but would read her lots of stories before turning the lights out. Katie wished Grandma was going to live with them instead of Wayne.

The second babysitter, who Katie preferred, was a girl named Rachel who lived across the street. Rachel was a teenager, which meant she had her own phone, her license, and even a boyfriend. Unfortunately, Rachel was also not available to baby sit as much because she was getting ready to take some test for college and had to work hard in school. Rachel even had a part time job at the diner! Katie practically worshipped Rachel because she was very pretty with long, straight blond hair, and because Rachel knew everything there was to know about not getting into trouble. She'd let Katie stay up until 9:30, sometimes 10 if Katie begged hard enough, and tell her stories about when she was a kid. Once, Katie even saw Rachel's boyfriend when he dropped by one night to return her math book.

Katie was pretty sure this was some kind of code, but she had been too shy to ask.

Rachel usually let Katie have two desserts and watch as much TV as she liked. She also taught Katie how to play Checkers.

This time, neither babysitter would be taking care of her. Her grandmother had a cold and didn't want Katie to catch it. Rachel had been asked, allegedly three weeks ago, to cover an extra shift at the diner because one of the other people there had quit. Diane only found this out two days ago.

Her mother had found it difficult to get someone to baby sit at the late notice. Katie watched her making numerous phone calls, and for awhile Katie thought that her mother might have to stay home.

She'd like that, if it meant Wayne wasn't going to be there. Even if he didn't spend the night, this would be a good thing. Wayne never wore a bathrobe in the morning, just boxers and a long shirt. Her real daddy _always_ wore a bathrobe in the morning.

Ultimately, Katie's mother found a fifteen year old boy willing to do the job. He had just moved to the area with one of his relatives, who Katie had never met but her mother knew through a friend.

So, at 6:30 on a Saturday evening, Katie Austen was in her room reading her favorite book of fairy tales when the doorbell rang.

Book abandoned, Katie ran down the stairs, hiding behind one of the tables in the dining room. She had to see firsthand what this babysitter was about before her mommy introduced them.

Diane was already dressed in her pink party dress when she answered the door. Katie thought her mother looked very pretty, but knew that her mother was going to put on at least a pound of makeup and the horrible sunflower earrings Wayne had given her last Christmas.

Not seeing Katie, Diane opened the door after it rang three times.

Sheesh. Whoever this babysitter was, he sure was impatient!

"Hello, dear. Are you James Ford?" Diane asked, standing in front of the open door.

A boy a head taller than Diane nodded, and she let him in.

"Katherine! Your babysitter is here!" her mom called.

Katie noticed that James winced when Diane said the word "babysitter". She guessed that boys didn't baby sit very much. She grinned. He probably didn't even know what he was supposed to do. This would be easy. She'd be able to watch TV all night and maybe even stay up until 10:30!

Katie stepped out from behind the dining room table. James saw her—her mother did not. His lips twitched, as though he was hiding a smile. She stood behind her mother, suddenly feeling a little scared. He looked _really_ tall, and not nearly as nice as Rachel had seemed. In fact, Katie suspected that he probably didn't want to be there at all.

_Well, fine,_ she told herself. _He can just leave me alone._

Diane turned to her daughter with a practiced smile, taking the girl by the hand. "Katherine, this is James Ford. He'll be babysitting you while Wayne and I go out to the Summers' party."

"_Katie_," she corrected. "Not Katherine."

Diane nodded absentmindedly. "Katie." She turned to James again. "Should she call you James?"

James shifted uncomfortably. "Yeah, she can. My friends call me Sawyer, though…"

He trailed off when it became clear that Diane Austen was not listening.

"Good. Now, Katie just ate dinner, but if she gets hungry later she can have a small snack. You can help yourself to one as well." Diane beamed. "She can watch a half an hour of TV, but _no more._ Bedtime is at 8:30. If she's been good, you can read one story to her, but _only_ if she's behaving herself." Diane paused. "That's about it. Board games are in the family room. She likes Clue and Monopoly. She also just learned how to play Checkers."

Diane shut the door then, turning away from a bemused Sawyer. "I'll be back by 11:30." She paused, then added, "Twelve at the latest. The contact numbers are on the fridge. Unless you have any questions, I need to finish getting ready."

"No, Mrs. Austen."

"Good. If you'll excuse me…" She turned away and headed back up the stairs. "I'll be leaving in about thirty minutes."

Katie stared up at Sawyer. Sawyer stared down at Katie. Each was measuring up the other, and neither were willing to be the first one to speak. Finally, Sawyer broke the silence.

"You wanna play Clue?"

Katie shook her head.

"Monopoly?"

Katie shook her head again, taking the time to inspect the babysitter. He was very tall, with sandy blond hair. The cut was kind of long for a boy, almost reaching his shoulders. He wore a pair of ripped jeans and a T-Shirt with some rock band on it.

He also had an earring in his left ear, but Katie was pretty sure it was a clip on.

"I want to draw."

Sawyer sighed. "Where are the art supplies?"

"In my room." She started up the stairs. "Are you coming?"

Sawyer sat down on her pink flower chair while Katie drew at her table. He kept looking at his watch when he thought the kid wasn't watching. Babysitting had _not_ been his idea and the two dollars and fifty cents an hour didn't seem as much as it had earlier. It was going to be a _long_ night.

Twenty minutes later, Diane popped in to announce that she was leaving, and then he was alone with Katherine.

Katie.

Katie glanced up at him from her picture of a horse. "You can draw too, Sawyer."

"I'm not much of an artist, Katie," he replied.

"It's better than just sitting there," Katie remarked, selecting a blue crayon from the box.

Sawyer shrugged, took a sheet of paper, and began to draw a boy. Once he was done with the outline, he grabbed some crayons and began to color the kid in. It was actually kind of fun. Out of the corner of his eyes, Sawyer watched as she drew a blue tail and colored in the eyes.

"Horses don't have blue tails, Freckles."

Katie didn't bother to look up. "This one does."

No point in arguing.

"What do you want to do when you're finished?" Sawyer asked, feeling the time slow down.

"Watch cartoons. Mommy tapes my favorites on the VCR."

"Sounds fun."

Katie couldn't tell if he was being serious. She colored in the horse's body with a yellow crayon. "How old are you?"

"How old do you think I am?" Sawyer replied, partly to have something to say and partly because he was curious.

"You're forty-three," Katie replied calmly.

Sawyer snorted. "I'm fifteen."

Katie looked up from her drawing. "You don't look fifteen."

"How old do I look?"

Katie sighed in exasperation as she put the crayons back in the box. "I already told you. Forty-three."

Sawyer stood up. "How old are you?"

"How old do you _think_ I am?" Katie retorted.

Sawyer gave Katie a sardonic smile. "You're three."

"I am not three!" Katie shouted indignantly. "I am six and a half. I'll be seven in May."

Sawyer snickered. "Same difference."

"No way! Three year olds are babies. They're still figuring out how to talk and some aren't even potty trained. Six and a half year olds are in school and they can read and write and do math."

"So you're tellin' me there ain't much of a difference between a sixteen year old and a forty-two year old but there's a world of difference between a six and a half year old and a three year old?""

"Forty-_three_," Katie corrected him, now putting away her paper.

"Well, excuse me, Freckles."

"You're excused," Katie replied seriously. "But my name isn't Freckles. It's Katie."

"Your ma said your name was Katherine," Sawyer retorted, standing up from the tiny chair.

His butt was starting to fall asleep.

Katie wrinkled her nose. "Only she calls me that, and I keep telling her I hate it. Parents." Katie rolled her eyes with exasperated patience. "Everyone else calls me Katie."

"And I'm gonna call you Freckles," Sawyer replied, giving her a grin that would melt the hearts of most girls his age.

"But my name _isn't_ Freckles," Katie insisted, now taking his hand. "Come on."

"Hold up, Katie. Where are we going?" Sawyer asked as he felt himself dragged across the room.

This kid was _strong._

"I'm hungry. I want ice cream."

Sawyer's stomach growled. "Ice cream sounds good." Then he picked her up. He wasn't usually affectionate with kids—or with anyone—but Katie was pretty cute and he didn't relish being dragged across the house.

Katie reacted pretty well to being carried. Unlike Wayne, who tossed her over his shoulder—occasionally hitting her on the bottom—Sawyer was pretty gentle. She was short for her age and didn't weigh much, so Sawyer had no problem holding her in his arms. This also meant that her arms were free, so she felt like she was sitting in a giant portable chair. Once they reached the kitchen, Sawyer released her into one of the kitchen chairs.

"What flavor?" he asked, opening the freezer without bothering to check what was inside.

"Strawberry," Katie replied promptly.

Sawyer scanned the contents. "All I see is vanilla and mint chocolate chip."

"Behind the peas."

Sawyer removed a large bag of frozen peas and, sure enough, there was a large carton of ice cream. When he opened it, he saw that it was half eaten.

"Wayne always eats it, so Mommy has to try and hide it," Katie explained as Sawyer returned the peas to the shelf.

"Strawberry is his favorite?" Sawyer replied skeptically, moving the carton to the sink as he opened the drawers to get some spoons.

"No, he eats all of them. He mixes them up." She made a face which Sawyer did not see. "It's really gross."

"Guess they all get mixed up inside you anyway," Sawyer laughed. "Where are the bowls?"

"On your left."

Sawyer stared at the half eaten box of vanilla ice cream and knew his stomach was going to start complaining soon.

"Will your mom care if I eat some of the vanilla?"

"That's Daddy's favorite."

"So…she won't care."

"No. He's only here every other weekend."

Sawyer headed back to the freezer to remove the vanilla ice cream. "You ever had strawberry and vanilla mixed? It's good."

"No…"

Katie watched as Sawyer piled the ice cream onto his bowl. "Can I try some of yours?"

Sawyer nodded and handed her a spoon. She took a big mouthful and then tried to take another spoonful. Sawyer thought about protesting, but decided to make another bowl for himself. He just hoped that she wouldn't be too hyper that evening.

Maybe she wouldn't finish it all. He hadn't meant to give her so much.

She didn't even manage half of it. Sawyer felt a wave of relief pass over him after Katie announced that she had enough and wanted to watch cartoons.

"You get the TV, and I'll clean these up," Sawyer said, turning on the water.

Katie nodded and ran to her favorite chair, directly in front of the TV. As Sawyer washed the dishes, Katie used the remote to find the beginning of the Flintstones, her latest favorite TV show. A few minutes into the episode, she saw Sawyer sit down in the couch beside her. He let out a few chuckles during various parts of the episode, but was not nearly as immersed in the show as Katie. At one point, he began looking through the basket of magazines to see if there was anything worth reading.

There wasn't. Apparently Diane only subscribed to cooking magazines and gardening magazines.

When the credits started to roll, Sawyer wondered if Katie was going to make a fuss about watching another episode. To her credit, she didn't. She waited until the theme song ended and then stopped the tape and turned off the TV. Sawyer thought they were both thinking the same thing: now what?

After a few minutes of uncomfortable silence, Katie blurted out a question she'd been wanting to ask since he arrived.

"Do you know Rachel's boyfriend?"

"Don't think so. But I don't know Rachel."

"How could you _not_ know Rachel?"

"Freckles, there are three hundred people in the tenth grade class. There ain't time to get to know every one of them."

Katie pondered this. "There are only eighteen people in first grade."

Sawyer shrugged. "There's more than eighteen in high school."

"So you don't know her boyfriend at _all_?" Katie pressed.

Sawyer let loose a grin. "What's his name?"

"Eric."

"We've got at least ten kids named Eric. That doesn't give me much to go on."

Katie tapped her chin as she thought. "He had red hair."

"Long or short?"

"I don't know." Katie got up. "Will you read to me?"

Sawyer glanced up at the clock. "It's only 7:30, and your ma said you don't have to be in bed until 8:30. Don't you want to do anything else before you go to bed?"

Katie followed Sawyer's eyes to the clock and grinned. "Let's play hide and seek!"

Sawyer groaned. "All right, but you gotta be the finder first." As he saw Katie pout, he explained, "You know this house way better than I do. I need to figure out where the good places are before I set you loose."

Katie nodded. "I'll count to ninety."

"Sounds fair." Sawyer paused. "Don't skip any numbers."

Her brow wrinkled. "I know."

Sawyer stood up. "Make sure you cover your eyes the whole time when you're counting."

Another twitch of the eyebrows. "I know how to play the game, _Sawyer._"

Sawyer let loose a wide grin. "Just making sure you don't accidentally forget when we're playing. Which reminds me," he added. "You can't look when you're counting."

Katie groaned. "Okay, okay." She stood up. "Ready, set, GO!"

Sawyer waited until Katie had reached five before leaving the room. Had to be sure that she wasn't going to cheat. He wasn't too big on Hide and Seek and he knew that it would be difficult to find Freckles once it was her turn. He'd have to keep an eye out for good places and maybe change places if it looked like she was going to find him too soon. If it got too late, he could always say it was her bedtime and it would be her turn next time.

There probably wouldn't be a next time, since Katie had a regular babysitter and Sawyer was not about to ruin his reputation by becoming a babysitter.

The extra money _could_ be nice, though…

Plus, Katie wasn't too bad, unlike some of the other kids he knew as the siblings of his friends.

He'd worry about it later.

The house was pretty big. Or maybe it was just because he was used to living in a trailer. There had to be ten rooms downstairs, and he hadn't even seen the upstairs except for Katie's room. Not to mention that they had a basement.

After looking around for awhile, he decided to hide behind the couch in the family room. Katie could only see him if she went outside because the couch was right in front of the sliding glass doors.

He crouched and waited, hearing Katie reach ninety and then holler, "Ready or not, here I come!"

To Sawyer's disappointment, it only took Katie a few minutes to find him. In fact, as soon as she entered the room, she began to giggle.

"I see you, Sawyer!"

Sawyer emerged from behind the couch. "How'd you see me, Freckles? I thought I had done a good job."

Katie rolled her eyes. "Your shadow. Plus, you can see the reflection in the door when it's dark."

He should have guessed.

"Well, it's my turn now," he said, getting to his feet. "By the way, the basement is off limits."

Katie rolled her eyes again. "No duh. Mommy never lets me down there unless she's home. We have mice."

Sawyer shuddered. "Ever hear of mouse traps?"

"We have them. Mommy doesn't want to check the traps so Daddy has to do it when he picks me up." She paused. "Or Wayne, but he hates it."

Her face darkened as she mentioned Wayne. Sawyer made a mental note about this but decided not to ask anything right away.

"It's your turn," he said by way of changing the subject.

Katie grinned toothily. "You can start counting here. I know where I'm going to hide!"

"Don't tell me that, or it won't be a secret."

"You'll _never_ find me!" Katie giggled.

Sighing, Sawyer covered his eyes and began to count.

After ten minutes of looking, Sawyer decided to try a different approach. He'd catch Katie by saying stuff that would make her laugh. He began by quoting the giant in Jack and the Beanstalk.

"Fee, Fie, Fo, Fum, I smell the blood of an Englishman!" he shouted. He checked under the chair in the dining room again. "Be he live or be he dead"—suddenly there was a stifled giggle—"I'll grind his bones to make my bread!"

A few more quotes later and Sawyer found Katie giggling under her bed.

"Gotcha."

Still giggling, Katie emerged from her hiding spot. "You wouldn't have found me if I wasn't laughing."

"Exactly," Sawyer replied with a smile. He looked at his watch. "It's getting late. Time for you to get ready for bed."

"One more game?" Katie pleaded.

Sawyer sighed. "It's up to you. We can play one more game—not Hide and Seek—or I can read to you before you go to sleep. Which do you want?"

Katie pursed her lips. "I want you to read to me."

"Then get on your pajamas and brush your teeth."

Katie shook her head. "I wear _nightgowns_ not pajamas."

"Okay, Freckles. Put on your nightgown." He paused. "I'll stay outside to give you privacy."

He shut the door behind him and began pacing absent mindedly. After a few minutes, Katie opened the door and hollered, "You can come in!"

She was wearing a frilly blue nightgown with short sleeves that reached her ankles. She spun around, causing the fabric to spin out around her.

"My daddy got it for me," she explained. "Isn't it pretty?"

Sawyer choked back a laugh. "Very nice, Freckles." He took her hand. "Time to brush your teeth."

Katie frowned. "Why do you call me Freckles?"

"Because you have freckles." Seeing Katie's confused expression, Sawyer explained. "You know, those dots on your face. They're freckles."

"Lots of people have freckles. Do you call everyone with freckles 'Freckles'?"

"Naw, not everyone."

"My daddy calls me princess."

"Sorry to disappoint you, but I ain't gonna call you princess." He followed Katie to her bathroom and watched as she selected her toothbrush.

Katie giggled. "That's silly."

She started brushing her teeth with a blue toothbrush that almost matched her nightgown. After she was done, Sawyer spoke.

"So, where's your dad now?"

Katie spit out the remainder of the toothpaste before responding. "He lives on the other side of town."

"Your folks aren't together?"

Seemed obvious enough, but he wanted to be sure. Katie's mom could be having an affair with Wayne.

Katie pulled out a purple hairbrush. "No. Mommy's going to marry Wayne."

"That who she was heading to the party with?"

"Yeah." Katie wrinkled her nose. "I don't like him."

It was probably a sensitive topic, but what the hell. It wasn't like he was going to baby sit Katie every weekend. He could afford to pry.

A little.

"Why not?"

Katie became defensive. "I just _don't_, okay?! Leave me alone!"

Sawyer raised his hands in surrender. "All right, all right." Then, "Watch with the attitude, missy."

Katie scowled. "Sorry." Then, "Don't call me that."

"What, missy?"

"Yes." As a way of explaining, Katie added, "Wayne calls me that and I hate it." She paused before adding, "He smells bad."

"Well, I won't call you that," Sawyer promised. "Anyway, I prefer Freckles."

Katie giggled as she pulled the brush through her hair.

"Uh, you need help brushing that?" Sawyer asked, stepping inside.

Katie shook her head. "I can brush my own hair."

"Just asking."

He sat down on the pink chair next to her bed. Katie stood next to it for a minute, clearly waiting for something.

"What?"

Katie sighed. "You're supposed to tuck me in."

"Can't you do that?"

Katie sighed heavily. "_You're_ supposed to."

"Fine." Sawyer pulled the covers aside. "Get in."

Katie obeyed and he threw the covers on top of her.

"How's that?"

"Your tucking in skills need a lot of work."

"What's wrong with them?" Sawyer knew he sounded a little defensive.

Katie shook her head. "Well, you don't just _throw_ the blankets over someone. You have to put them over me nicely and make sure I'm comfortable. You also have to tuck the blankets under me so I don't get cold."

"Can't you do that?"

The six and a half year old glared at him. "No. I'm in the bed."

Sawyer held up his hands in surrender. "Fine, we'll do it again."

He removed the covers from Kate and asked, "Are you comfortable?"

Katie nodded sleepily and turned on her side. He carefully put the blankets over her body and then tucked some of them around both sides of her stomach and her legs.

"You forgot my feet," she corrected, wiggling her toes.

Exhaling, Sawyer tucked the blankets around Katie's feet.

"You all set?" he asked, watching as she turned her head towards him.

"Much better," she said with a yawn.

"What story do you want me to read you?"

"Rapunzel. It's in the green book on the table."

Sawyer removed the book from the table and took a seat in the one adult looking chair in the room. He pulled it next to Katie's bed and began to read.

Sawyer had never even heard of this story before, so he was surprised to find out it was about a witch who locked her daughter in a tower and climbed up her hair when she wanted to see her. At least the story ended somewhat happily, with the witch dying and Rapunzel finding her prince. He thought it was kind of wimpy that the prince hadn't been able to find Rapunzel for a couple of years, but the bushes had blinded him until Rapunzel's tears fixed his eyes.

Also kind of stunk that Rapunzel was stuck raising two kids until the prince decided to show up and give her a hand with them.

Definitely a weird story. Not what he'd pick for a kid, but the book it came from was called "Favorite Fairy Tales For Children".

Well, _they'd_ know…

Katie looked half asleep by the time the story was over, but her eyes opened as Sawyer reached to turn out the light.

"You have to leave the night light on," she said through a yawn.

"All right, Freckles."

She yawned again. "Will you stay with me until I fall asleep?"

"If you want me to," Sawyer replied.

A few minutes later, Katie's snores filled the air. Sawyer quietly got up from the chair, opened the door, and left the room. He decided to watch TV until Diane got home, but nothing good was on. There was a bookcase next to the TV and Sawyer decided to try his luck with those.

He was immersed in _Of Mice and Men_ when he heard the door open and two loud people laughing. One sounded drunk.

He shut the book and returned it to the shelf. Diane and the guy with her—who must be Wayne—walked into the adjoining kitchen. Sawyer felt an instant dislike for the man.

He glanced at the clock and saw that it was just before 12. He rubbed his eyes. How had it gotten so late?

He stood up awkwardly. "Hi, Mrs. Austin."

Diane turned away from her fiancé long enough to notice Sawyer standing there. "Oh, hi, honey. Let me get you your pay."

"You got here around 6 and it's almost 12, so that's six hours. Two fifty times six…Wayne, what's that?"

"I think that's ten, Diane."

Diane frowned. "No, it's fifteen." She took out a ten and a five from her purse. "Here you go, James."

Sawyer accepted the money awkwardly. "Katie's still sleeping. Should I go up and say goodbye to her?"

Diane smiled warmly. "No need for that, honey." She walked him toward the door, exchanging glances at Wayne. "Were there any problems?"

"No, Katie was great," Sawyer replied, shoving the money in one of his jeans' pocket.

She opened the door. "Well, thanks for coming on such short notice. We'll give your grandma a call if we need you again."

Sawyer waved awkwardly as he left the house. To his surprise, he had actually had fun. Maybe he'd even do it again. Katie had been pretty cute.

He ended up babysitting Katie two more times before his grandma died and he was sent to live with his uncle at the end of the following year.

Sawyer had a vague recollection of Katie when they got stranded on the island, but first figured that there was no way the distant Kate could be the Katie he once babysat. By the time he realized it was probably the same person, Sawyer thought it would sound stupid to tell her.

Kate, as she was now called, had a similar memory of Sawyer, but never said anything about it. Whether it was because she didn't remember or she didn't want Sawyer to remember, he didn't know.


End file.
